Rolling device for a displaceable cross frog

ABSTRACT

In a roller device ( 6, 7 ) for a movable point of frog ( 1 ), including a sliding strip ( 18 ) and at least one roller ( 11 ) and at least one roller bearing ( 12 ) fixed to a stationary part of the switch, the roller(s) ( 11 ) is/are mounted on an arm ( 19 ) of a double-armed lever ( 10 ). The pivot bearing ( 12 ) of the lever ( 10 ) is arranged in a support ( 13 ) connected with a stationary part of the switch, wherein the arm ( 18 ) facing away from the roller(s) ( 11 ), of the double-armed lever ( 10 ) is pivotable against a spring ( 19 ) with adjustable spring power.

The invention relates to a roller device for a movable point of frog,including a sliding strip and at least one roller and at least oneroller bearing fixed to a stationary part of the switch.

A device of this type is, for instance, known from WO 94/26976 A1. Inthat known roller device, an element comprising a projection extendingalong, or approximately along, the central axis of the point of frogdeparts directly or indirectly from the point of frog on the side of thefoot, wherein said element interacts with a roller element whose centralaxis extends in, or approximately in, a symmetrical plane extendingbetween the wing rail. In that known device, the roller guide on whichthe roller rolls off is, thus, directly or indirectly connected with thepoint of frog, whereby the respective roller is supported by a structurefixed to the side rails. The roller device known from WO 94/26976 A1serves to support the point of frog at a switching movement from oneabutment position into the other. In order to cause the point of frog tobe lifted from the slide chair during such switching movement, theroller guide in that case comprises two outer, concavely extendingportions and a central, preferably plateau-shaped portion on its surfacefacing the roller. On the roller guide connected with the point of frog,a guide track is thus provided, which is configured in a manner that thepoint of frog is lifted from the slide chair as the guide track slidesover the roller element.

Similar roller devices have also become known for tongue rails, whereina roller device in which the roller cooperates with spring elements may,for instance, be taken from WO 94/02682 A1. It has, however, turned outthat the known roller devices are not readily suitable for thesubsequent installation into existing track systems.

For the purpose of creating a roller device for a movable point of frog,which can be readily installed into an existing system even subsequentlywithout involving any cumbersome adaptation or adjustment work at theexisting rails and, in particular, the point of frog and wing rails orside rails, it was proposed in the earlier application A 1429/2001 tomount the roller in a roller holder connected with the point of frog andto connect the roller guide with the wing rails and, in particular, therail foot, or with the ground plate. By such a proposal the subsequentmounting of the roller device was substantially facilitated due to thefact that, unlike in known configurations, the roller holder wasdirectly connected with the point of frog and the roller was thusattached to the point of frog. Yet, any fine-tuning is still relativelyexpensive, calling for a huge number of precisely adapted structuralcomponents. In particular, it is not readily feasible in that earlierconfiguration to realize an appropriate resilient support in a simplemanner.

The present inventions aims to further simplify the installation of aroller device for a movable point of frog and, at the same time, renderfeasible the provision of an appropriate support of the point of frog onseveral points along the axial lengths of the point of frog with aminimum of adjustment work and, in particular, by using identical springelements. To solve this object, the configuration according to theinvention consists essentially in that the roller(s) is/are mounted onan arm of a double-armed lever, that the pivot bearing of the lever isarranged in a support connected with a stationary part of the switch,and that the arm facing away from the roller(s), of the double-armedlever is pivotable against a spring with adjustable spring power. Due tothe fact that the rollers are mounted on an arm of a double-armed leverwith the pivot bearing of the lever being arranged in a supportconnected with a stationary part of the switch, it is feasible in aparticularly simple manner to subsequently simply fix the respectivesupport in order to simply insert the double-armed lever laterally, thussubstantially facilitating its installation. Due to the fact that thearm facing away from the roller or rollers, of the double-armed lever ispivotable against a spring with adjustable spring power, it is feasiblein a simple manner to define the desired spring power, the adjustabilityof the spring power being readily feasible without impediment outsidethe region of the movable point of frog. If, as in accordance with apreferred embodiment of the roller device according to the invention,the configuration is devised such that the lever arm ratio of thedouble-armed levers of a switch is each selected to be identical and therespectively shorter lever arm carries the roller(s), it willconsequently be feasible for roller devices neighboring in thelongitudinal direction of the frog to employ identical spring elements,with the identical setting force being each applicable to adjust saidspring force. It is, therefore, not necessary to define different springelements as a function of the installation situation, and the samesetting paths and same setting forces will each be used in anyinstallation position. In this manner, particularly simple adjustmentand hence particularly safe subsequent mounting will be ensured in theevent of subsequent mounting.

As already mentioned, the fixation of the support in a particularlysimple manner may be effected to the supporting structure for themovable point of frog outside the region of the wing rails. Theconfiguration in this respect in a particularly advantageous manner isdevised such that the support is fixed to the wing rails or thesupporting structure of the switch, and that the adjustment device forthe spring in top view is arranged outside the wing rails or thesupporting structure, respectively, wherein the pivot bearing of thelever is provided in a substantially U-shaped support and, inparticular, in or on the side cheeks of said support. Such a supportwhich is substantially U-shaped in cross section and whose side cheekscarry the pivot bearings of the lever allows for the insertion of thedouble-armed lever in the longitudinal direction of the U-shapedsupport, and hence transverse to the longitudinal direction of therails, and the pivotal fixation of the same in its respective positionin a particularly simple manner. For fine tuning it will, thus, besufficient to position the pivotable lever accordingly and, after this,adjust the spring to the value that will be identical for all positions,as a function of the lever ratio. In this respect, the configuration mayadvantageously be devised such that the lever arm ratio is 2:3 to 1:3,preferably 1:2, so that relatively small-structured springs will do.

In order to enable the selection of an accordingly favorable positionfor the spring with adjustable spring force irrespective of therespective installation situation of the support, it is feasible todesign the double-armed levers each having the same lever arm ratiodifferently for different installation conditions. In that case, it maybe of particular advantage to devise the configuration in a manner thatthe lever arm is designed to be cranked, whereby the individual rollerdevices as a function of the structural length of the movable points offrog may be designed to be substantially identical in terms of structureexcept for the lever length. The adjustment device required for theadjustment of the spring force may each be positioned where particularlyeasy handling is provided.

In the following, the invention will be explained in more detail by wayof an exemplary embodiment schematically illustrated in the drawing.Therein,

FIG. 1 is a ground plan of a switch portion including a movable point offrog;

FIG. 2 is a section along line II/II of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a section along line III/III of FIG. 1.

FIG. 1 illustrates a frog with a point of frog 1 as well as wing rails 2and 3. Furthermore, a ground plate 4 including a reinforcement frame 5and the two locking arrangements 24 and 25 are apparent. The rollerdevices according to the invention are denoted by 6 and 7, respectively,wherein, as is apparent from the views according to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3,the roller device 7 is fixed to the wing rails 2 and 3 by the aid of asupporting structure and the roller device 6 is fixed to the groundplate 4 after the runout of the wing rails.

FIG. 2 depicts the roller device 7, wherein the point of frog 1 is inabutment on the wing rail 3 and a slide strip 8 is connected with thefoot of the point of frog 1, said slide strip 8 cooperating with aroller 11 mounted on an arm 9 of a double-armed lever 10. Thedouble-armed lever 10, by means of a pivot bearing 12, is pivotallymounted in a stationary U-shaped support 13 which is clamped to the wingrails 2 and 3 via brackets 14 and 15 as well as the clamping elements 16and screw bolts 17. The arm 18 facing away from the roller 11, of thedouble-armed lever 10 is mounted so as to be pivotable against thespring 19, the spring force of the spring 19 being adaptable to therespective requirements by the aid of an adjustment bolt 20.

Departing from the position of the point of frog 1 illustrated in thedrawing, in which the point of frog 1 abuts on the wing rail 3 and thepoint of frog 1 abuts on the roller 11 via the smaller-height portion ofthe slide strip 8, the point of frog 1 is lifted from the bearing plateat a switching movement in the sense of arrow 21 by the ramp formed onthe slide strip running onto the roller 11 and thus abutting on the sameby its larger-height portion. The switching movement of the point offrog 1 is thereby facilitated and the wear minimized. As the point offrog 1 approaches the wing rail 2, the roller 11 reaches again thesmaller-height region of the slide strip via the ramp illustrated on theleft-hand side of the drawing so as to cause the point of frog 1 to abuton the wing rail 2 and rest again on the ground plate.

FIG. 3 depicts the roller device 6, which, as opposed to the rollerdevice 7, is not fixed to the wing rails but to the ground plate 4. Inthe region of the arrangement of the roller device 6, the switchingmovement of the point of frog occurs over a smaller switching path, andthe shape of the guiding path on the slide strip 8 is, therefore,adapted to the reduced displacement path. The point of frog 1 in thisregion is comprised of the main point 22 and the side point 23. As forthe rest, the reference numerals used in FIG. 2 have been retained foridentical parts.

1. A roller device for a movable point of frog, comprising a slidingstrip, at least one roller (11), and at least one roller bearing fixedto a stationary part of a switch, wherein said at least one roller (11)is mounted on a first arm (9) of a double-armed lever (10), a pivotbearing (12) of the lever (10) is arranged in a support (13) connectedwith a stationary part of the switch, and a second arm (18) of thedouble-armed lever (10) facing away from the at least one roller (11) ispivotable against a spring (19) with adjustable spring power.
 2. Aroller device according to claim 1, wherein lever arm ratios ofdouble-armed levers (10) of a switch are each selected to be identical,and the first lever arm (9) is respectively shorter than the secondlever arm (18), and carries the at least one roller (11).
 3. A rollerdevice according to claim 1, wherein the pivot bearing (12) of the lever(10) is arranged in a substantially U-shaped support (13).
 4. A rollerdevice according to claim 1, wherein a lever arm ratio of thedouble-armed lever (10) is 2:3 to 1:3.
 5. A roller device according toclaim 1, wherein the second lever arm (18) is designed to be cranked. 6.A roller device according to claim 1, wherein the support (13) is fixedto wing rails (2, 3) or to supporting structure (4, 5) of the switch,and an adjustment device (20) for the spring (19) in top view isarranged outside the wing rails (2, 3) or the supporting structure (4,5), respectively.
 7. A roller device according to claim 1, wherein thepivot bearing (12) of the lever (10) is arranged in or on side cheeks ofsaid support (13).
 8. A roller device according to claim 1, wherein alever arm ratio of the double-armed lever (10) is 1:2.
 9. A rollerdevice according to claim 2, wherein the pivot bearing (12) of the lever(10) is arranged in a substantially U-shaped support (13).
 10. A rollerdevice according to claim 2, wherein a lever arm ratio of thedouble-armed lever (10) is 2:3 to 1:3.
 11. A roller device according toclaim 3, wherein a lever arm ratio of the double-armed lever (10) is 2:3to 1:3.
 12. A roller device according to claim 7, wherein a lever armratio of the double-armed lever (10) is 2:3 to 1:3.
 13. A roller deviceaccording to claim 2, wherein the second lever arm (18) is designed tobe cranked.
 14. A roller device according to claim 3, wherein the secondlever arm (18) is designed to be cranked.
 15. A roller device accordingto claim 4, wherein the second lever arm (18) is designed to be cranked.16. A roller device according to claim 7, wherein the second lever arm(18) is designed to be cranked.
 17. A roller device according to claim8, wherein the second lever arm (18) is designed to be cranked.
 18. Aroller device according to claim 2, wherein the support (13) is fixed towing rails (2, 3) or to supporting structure (4, 5) of the switch, andan adjustment device (20) for the spring (19) in top view is arrangedoutside the wing rails (2, 3) or the supporting structure (4, 5),respectively.
 19. A roller device according to claim 3, wherein thesupport (13) is fixed to wing rails (2, 3) or to supporting structure(4, 5) of the switch, and an adjustment device (20) for the spring (19)in top view is arranged outside the wing rails (2, 3) or the supportingstructure (4, 5), respectively.
 20. A roller device according to claim4, wherein the support (13) is fixed to wing rails (2, 3) or tosupporting structure (4, 5) of the switch, and an adjustment device (20)for the spring (19) in top view is arranged outside the wing rails (2,3) or the supporting structure (4, 5), respectively.
 21. A roller deviceaccording to claim 5, wherein the support (13) is fixed to wing rails(2, 3) or to supporting structure (4, 5) of the switch, and anadjustment device (20) for the spring (19) in top view is arrangedoutside the wing rails (2, 3) or the supporting structure (4, 5),respectively.
 22. A roller device according to claim 7, wherein thesupport (13) is fixed to wing rails (2, 3) or to supporting structure(4, 5) of the switch, and an adjustment device (20) for the spring (19)in top view is arranged outside the wing rails (2, 3) or the supportingstructure (4, 5), respectively.
 23. A roller device according to claim8, wherein the support (13) is fixed to wing rails (2, 3) or tosupporting structure (4, 5) of the switch, and an adjustment device (20)for the spring (19) in top view is arranged outside the wing rails (2,3) or the supporting structure (4, 5), respectively.